The Life and Times of Miblo del Carpio

With an explanation forthcoming. The time for a punctual article has long been overdue, thus must this now suffice, ensuring lateness hence becomes a thing of the past. The relevance of this Word of the Week will be revealed next time.

Word of the Week

Codicology

codicology n. the study of manuscripts.

Definition courtesy of the Concise Oxford Dictionary

It was quite a moving moment when I arrived finally at Chapter Fourteen and came to fill in my template for the final time. There was a certain comfort in that systematic approach to creating my Table of Contents, and to have to say goodbye to it was a little sad. Sad because it was a system that I had created, so simple and efficient in its design, free of any ulterior motive, serving only to make the life of an humble blogger a little easier, to which I had to say goodbye. It will still be used as a reference point for when I need to expand my contents page with the addition of new articles (such as this one), but only in fits and starts: no longer will extended periods of systematic highlighting and middle-clicking be needed or allowed.

Sad moments, but also very exciting times! With the birth of the contents page, the old tagging system has been abandoned (so far as the reader is concerned), to be replaced by a bloglist which can be seen to the right-hand side, underneath my picture. The title reads 'Tags', but it bears only a passing resemblance to the clumsy tags section of old. Gone are the multitude of structural tags (i.e. those denoting chapter number) - which still exist but are concealed behind links on the contents page - and now you see only the tags which need to be seen, complete with their correct capitalisation. There are just two disadvantages to this: as it is a bloglist, all the links open in a new window; and the number of articles bearing a particular tag no longer appears next to each one, and updates as new articles are tagged. However, the positives outweigh the negatives, I feel: the blog is much more streamlined, and the links can now be sorted exactly as I like.

And through all of this process I've learnt two new skills: firstly I have discovered how to make definition lists in HTML; and most favourably of all, which I have long yearned for, I have discovered the ability to sort blog articles in reverse, i.e. to sort them in chronological order, such that the oldest articles appear at the top, with the newest at the bottom. Thus, now, because of this knowledge and the birth of the contents page, my blog can be read like a book. You may choose to read particular chapters which take your fancy, or specific articles which you may have in mind - every one of which can be accessed with only two clicks from the homepage - or you may be a very adventurous sort and want to sit down for a good few hours and read your way through the entirety of my blog, all two and a half years' worth of blogging history. However your fancy takes you, this blog is now entirely at your mercy. To be enjoyed!

Word of the Week

Contents from content²

content² n. 1 (usu. in pl.) what is contained in something, esp. in a vessel, book, or house. 2 the amount of a constituent contained (low sodium content). 3 the substance or material dealt with (in a speech, work of art, etc.) as distinct from its form or style. 4 the capacity or volume of a thing.

Definition courtesy of the Concise Oxford Dictionary

Dear Friend,

I've recently met a girl. A wonderful girl, a beautiful girl, an intelligent girl. Well, I haven't actually met her, but I have seen her. And she isn't so much a girl either, but rather the topmost pinnacle of womankind. A lady, I may say. An actual lady.

Oh! whenever I see her, I'm filled to the brim with ardour, and yet she never so much as glances at me. The pain! Oh, the pain! Since Susie went away on maternity leave, she's been sitting there in Dictionary Corner, quiet and beautiful, radiating loveliness, sharing her bounteous knowledge with me, and yet not once sparing a glance. Somebody said they thought her a younger, quieter version of Carol. 'A what!' I cried in indignation. 'She's an entirely different species from old Vorders!' was the thought in mind. No, Alison is something entirely other. She's an angel, my friend.

I write to you now, asking you: What shall I do? Should I give it up now, to save my heart from breaking clean in two (or from being cleft in twain, as Hamlet's mother might have said), and thus now begin the healing process before too much damage has been done? Or shall I pursue it, clinging to the hope that my love will be reciprocated?

I leave it to you, yours,

Miblo del Carpio.

Word of the Week

Ardour

ardour n. zeal, burning enthusiasm, passion.

Definition courtesy of the Concise Oxford Dictionary

Having been steadily working all day through this transcription (which being a part of my assignment needing to be submitted by midnight), I realise now that a lot more time will be needed, and I'll be unlikely to have enough of it free today to write the substantial article which this blog has been much in need of for some while. So, have some compassion, will you? I've decided that I'd better at least give you the Word of the Week here, before the mad rush towards the end of the day, when the deadline's approaching, the internet connection's failing (the assignment needing to be submitted online), and with still four hundred words to be written. Have some compassion for a hard-working student, won't you?

Cheers very kindly.

Word of the Week

Compassion

compassion n. pity inclining one to help or be merciful.

Definition courtesy of the Concise Oxford Dictionary

Shall we aim for this to be such a year? There have been plans aplenty over the last few ones, but only a very slight proportion of them have managed to materialise: most notably of those, I would say, are my frantic escape from the depths of despair to the bright open world of Linux, and my joining the Open University to study for a BA (Hons) in English Language and Literature. The vast majority of plans, though, have simply failed to get any purchase. Don't misunderstand me, I'm not one to whimsically plan for things that are at the very boundaries of attainability, nor one to make lots and lots of very small plans whose outcomes (whether completed or not) will have very little or no consequence other than the slight feeling of disappointment at a wasted idea.

This isn't an article (can you call such a feeble attempt an article?) declaring all manner of new year's resolutions, but just a little pinch of positivity to push 2008 on its way, with the intention to explore such infinite possibilities as a year such as this will be likely to offer.

Word of the Week

Infinity

infinity n. (pl. -ies) 1 the state of being infinite. 2 an infinite number or extent. 3 infinite distance. 4 Math. infinite quantity.

Definition courtesy of the Concise Oxford Dictionary